Im looking to use this soil as it seems to come highly recommended in here. Unfortunately there are no stores here that carry it.
This leaves Amazon. There are a lot of reviews complaining about bugs and nats but there are many more that are positive.
Has anyone had experience ordering soil off Amazon?
What nutrients do you plan on using?
@Ocean. I honestly don’t know. First time grower faking my way through based on all the info on this forum.
Im completely open to suggestions.
Got fox farm soil from Amazon pleanty
Ok, so for a first time grower here’s what I’ve learned to this point (and I’m by no means near as good as others on here by any means) having said that, I’d recommend coco in fabric pots using jacks 321 formula…it’s cheap, easy, extremely forgiving, and produces amazing buds…(@Hellraiser has been growing for over 20 years and has switched to this, so that to me says something about this combo)
Having said that, here’s a comparison from my findings:
soil: has NPK in it and can burn plants easy, needs close monitoring of run off for ph issues, can hold nutrient salts and cause lockout, smells, easy to over water, can inhibit pests, needs a wet/dry cycle
Coco: is inert, has no NPK so no burning (unless you overfeed)…extremely forgiving and very hard to over water in it, does not smell, drains easy, needs water/feeding more often (no wet/dry cycle)
I will only comment of fox farms and jacks nutrients as that is what I have experience in ( which I very quickly learned the hard way on this)
Fox farm: costly (hundreds) to get the full line (although the full line isn’t necessary, but advised), needs cal mag added, easy to accidentally over do it, requires a flushing schedule to prevent lockout, but more importantly you have to change the feeding amounts and which ones to use at different times which can be confusing to new growers
Jacks: there is a part A, part B and regular garden epsom salt…extremely easy to use, formula is as simple as 3.6g of part A, 1.2g of epsom salt, stir and dissolve, then add 2.4g of part b…ph the feed to desired level (5.8 for coco, 6.2-6.4 for soil) and feed. This can be started as seeds and never changes all the way to harvest ($130 total investment for 25# part A, B and 10# of epsom salt), which lays about 5 grow cycles doing 6 plants at a feeding of every other day ($0.06 a gallon)
As someone who has bought just about every item needed twice I can 100% say that the jacks/coco combo is the way to go 
I will tag you in a few journals, some are longer reads, but the amount of knowledge is incredible.
I should add:
Ocean forest is $40-60 bag
Coco $20 brick (about 2 bags of soil)
So that frees up a lot of $$ to buy better lights
I’ve always gotten my Happy Frog off Amazon. I’ve not had a bad experience. All the bags have been great.
I agree that fox farm is a little inconsistent more so the east coast version I try to buy from a. West coast store but it’s massed. Produced and. Bugs love soil with worm castings and such but you can’t control that and. Storage has a lot to do with it which some places don’t know or care to store right inspect with that said probably grew 10 runs with it finishing one now now I am not the best grower on this site but choose your media how you want to grow all organic living soil ,hydro exct.I think you are On the. Right track I would also recommend jacks however you decide just don’t buy miracle grow and people here can help.
So just so I’m 100%, buy enough coco bricks for 5gal and jacks 321.
The 321 would just be dissolved in water together, correct?
Is there an easy way to measure it?
When buying your CO-CO make sure it’s buffered so you won’t have Cal-Mag issues.
OK so the Coco bricks will expand I would get two (I like to have extra) of the Canna Coco bricks as they have a very high reputation for quality and they are pre-buffered, for the jacks you mix part a then the Epson salt dissolve it and then mix in the part B. Once it’s all dissolved check your pH and adjust as necessary I like mine right at 5.8.
It really is as simple as that! There are a few other additives that you can use if you want to but they aren’t necessary stuff like re-charge that has no nutritional value but adds some microbes for your roots which are always beneficial. Or there is mammoth P, or cytoplus, and tribus… all of these are in addition to your nutrients, they also do not have any nutritional value they just feed the roots. You can also look for some cheap silica as silica helps strengthen stems… this can’t be crucial at the later stages when your buds start becoming heavy and dense you want the stems to support that weight.
Measuring I have a tiny gram scale that is used for food that measures .00 g. You can often find these pretty cheap at Amazon as well as sometimes gas stations have them.
This is the one I use:
WOWOHE Digital Pocket Scales Gram Food Scale Kitchen Portable Scale Small Mini Cooking Scale Digital Weight Grams Accuracy 0.01g Capacity 500g https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F5SCDD3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_30TBDVZ0GYMRPFKP9VWW
@Ocean is this what im looking for?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08C3ZTJFL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_NAX0PDHHT4AAR51W6JWT
Jacks Hydroponic 5-12-26 Part A Fertilizer https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CWXTJ6X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_XZP91E91JXNZEHR8X51H?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Jack’s 15-0-0 Calcium Nitrate 25 lb. Fertilizer - Part B (1) Amazon.com
Epsom Salt by Sky Organics (5 lbs.) - 100% Pure Magnesium Sulfate USP Grade Kosher Non-GMO – Bath and Foot Soak Soothing Body Soak. Made in USA https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KW6CF36/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_G5A5ZCMAH53ZX1EW5CQ5
CANNA Coco Brick 40l Expandable Natural Plant Medium Soil Substrate, 40 Liter Expanded - 8 Liter Dry, Reusable (1) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B010OG1MVA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_5B7ETSV93YJPDAY8X0YZ
VIVOSUN 5-Pack 5 Gallon Grow Bags Heavy Duty 300G Thickened Nonwoven Plant Fabric Pots with Handles Amazon.com
Real Growers Recharge (8oz) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J1CAEIG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_PZ5R2X8DZN26YEXZ2109
Dyna-Gro DYTEK032 Nutrient, 1-Quart, 1 qt https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000E1VZHC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_75GRGD15YGGRRC0R5K47
That’s everything you need except the lights, fans and tent.
This will get you from seed to harvest probably 3 times over (then you’ll need more silica and coco
That 6pz kit is only 3 oz of the part A…which is roughly 2-(ish) weeks worth.
That person seems to be reselling illegally, and I don’t support that, plus you have to take his/her word that it’s correct stuff, not a chance I’m willing to take
Yep, I did not realize until reading the description. Definitely seems that someone is just splitting it apart.
I guess I have no choice but to buy a whole bunch, lol.
@Ocean first off, I really appreciate your help…thank you. I was reading your journal and you mention using happy frog soil and perlite mixed with coco…is there a good ratio to go with?
Also, when do you start the Jacks?
Growing in coco is a major commitment to water water water. It can be several times a day based on how light the mix is and the size of the container. @Ocean tell me if I am wrong. Do you hand water or use some sort of hydro setup? I just received a 1 pot autopot XL specifically to give coco and Jack’s a try.
I buy my fox farm products from Farm & Fleet. They may not be in your area but check agricultural supply, garden and nursery centers before paying through the nose from Amazon. If you are careful and read the package ingredients, you can find suitable soils at Menards, Home Depot and Lowes. Make sure you avoid anything with time release fertilizer.
I really like the GrowIt brand of bricks.
I ended up going with 100% cocoa, no happy frog mixed in due to simplicity, and then as I was mixing up my containers I decided to add in about four handfuls of pearlite just to assist with drainage and that is it…they went into 7 gallon containers and that’s what I have been running with every since.
@beardless when my seeds are sprouts i give them enough water with full Jack’s feedings Every morning before I go to work just as the lights come on, at stage 1 gallon of mix last me about a week, as they grow up I start giving them a little more at a time, when I transplant from 3 inch cups to 1 gallon containers I can go to about a quarter of a gallon of feeding again every day but at that stage I start moving to every two days. When they get going good in their final homes which for me ate 7 gallon pots, I go to a half gallon ea (again full feeding). When they are about a foot and a half to 2 feet tall I start giving them 1 gallon each every two days like clockwork.
I feel like for a new grower this is a pretty good schedule because most new growers are going to want to be in their garden a lot just to check stuff out so by having a regular schedule like this it keeps the gardener occupied.
, I hand feed all of mine every two days as required by mixing up a 5 gallon container of my feed mix that has a spout on it. The 5 gallon container up on a shelf and open the valve at the bottom and let gravity drain down and hold the hose at the end in the containers until 1 gallon has gone through